


On My Way

by daenyara



Category: Choices: Open Heart, Open Heart (Visual Novels), PlayChoices
Genre: Car Accidents, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Love Confessions, Surgery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-30
Updated: 2020-04-30
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:35:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,508
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23930920
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daenyara/pseuds/daenyara
Summary: Victoria can’t stop thinking about her fight with Bryce.
Relationships: Bryce Lahela/Main Character (Open Heart), Jackie Varma & Main Character (Open Heart), Sienna Trinh & Main Character (Open Heart)
Kudos: 10





	On My Way

[Originally posted by orthoglasses](https://tmblr.co/ZX_Six2nN-p4Y)

It was almost 11 when Victoria finally forced herself out of the bed and dragged her feet towards the kitchen. _Thank God_ , she didn’t have to go to work.

“Well, good morning to you, _roomie_.” Jackie snorted in amusement at the sight of her friend, who still wearing yesterday’s clothes and had smudges of ruined mascara on her cheeks. Victoria didn’t reply.

From the other side of the kitchen, Sienna flashed her a sympathetic smile, right before serving her a warm cup of coffee. “Rough night?”

Victoria murmured a ‘thanks’ and took a long sip before replying. “You could say so…Haven’t slept much, to be honest,” she admitted, and there couldn’t have been a bigger understatement. She hadn’t been able to sleep all night, not even for 5 minutes of well-deserved rest, and it was not for lack of trying- all she wanted was to fall into a slumber, had her thoughts stopped swirling frantically in her head. But most of all, what had kept her awake was the bitter taste of anger and hurt pooling in her stomach. And now she felt like screaming.

“Oh, did the scalpel jokey did a number on yo-”

Jackie’s joke was cut off when Sienna threw her the dirtiest glance, silently nodding towards Victoria in exasperation. Something was clearly off. Sienna grabbed a stool and sat beside her friend, immediately putting a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“What’s wrong, hun?”

She was sweet like this, so quick to care about her friends, that Victoria didn’t have the heart to tell her she wasn’t in the mood to talk.

“Bryce and I got into a fight. It was bad. We didn’t break up, but…” Victoria shrugged, not wanting to explain any further. Vague was all the explanation she could offer right now, and hopefully neither Jackie nor Sienna were going to push for more details. Her friends exchanged an unsure look but said nothing. When Victoria raised her head she saw that Sienna’s forehead was furrowed with concern and felt a stitch of guilt. “I’m okay, Sienna, really.”

That’s exactly what she wanted to avoid, thought Victoria. They already lived together and saw each other at work every day, not to mention the nights spent together in bars while they embarrassed themselves during karaoke. She didn’t want to drag them into whatever problem she might have with Bryce, especially since he was their friend as well. It just wasn’t fair.

“You need something better than coffee,” stated Jackie as she stood up abruptly. Victoria cocked an eyebrow, sceptical.

“Isn’t it a little too early for tequila?”

Jackie rolled her eyes, huffing dramatically before throwing a small paper bag at Victoria - who barely had the time to grab it before it hit her face. “I meant _a_ _croissant_ , ya dumbass.” Jackie sat again, crossing her arms and studying Victoria’s expression as she nibbled at the pastry. “Wanna talk about it?”

Victoria flashed her a half-smile. “Thanks, but right now I just want to murder Bryce.”

“I know a good lawyer that can make it look like an accident,” replied Jackie in a loud whisper as she leaned forward and winked conspiratorially. A moment later, they both erupted into laughter and Sienna joined them, shaking her head in exasperated amusement.

The conversation moved onto happier topics, and after a while, Victoria had almost forgotten why she was upset in the first place. _Almost._ But at least she wasn’t obsessing over her fight with Bryce instead of enjoying her free day.

It was only a couple hours later that the lively chatter was interrupted by the ringing sound of a pager. Victoria frowned and grabbed the pager from her pocket.

“Is it yours?” asked Jackie in confusion, “But I thought you weren’t on-call today.”

“I’m not,” said Victoria distractedly, but before she could even understand what was going on, Sienna’s phone started to ring as well and she grabbed it in a rush.

“Danny?” Sienna’s smile vanished as she listened to whatever Danny was saying. “ _Oh my God!_ ” Sienna slapped a hand on her mouth to cover a panicked gasp, as her eyes found Victoria’s. “We’re on our way,” they heard Sienna say before closing the call. She was still eyeing Victoria, clearly unsure of how to break the news.

Jackie’s eyebrows shot up as she stared expectantly at her friend. “You gonna explain or what? What is…?” she started arguing, but Sienna cut her off.

“It’s Bryce. He got into an accident.”

The words lingered in the air for an endless moment before Victoria could make sense of them. Then they hit her.

“Is he-” she tried to ask, but the words died on her lips as she felt her throat go dry. Was Bryce okay? She needed to know, she needed to ask, but her voice didn’t work. She was frozen on the spot, quiet terror spreading in her bones, so crippling that she had forgotten how to breathe.

“I don’t know, I’m sorry,” Sienna’s eyes were widened and glistening as she shook her head vehemently. “Danny just told me he was in the ambulance and they were carrying him to Edenbrook. Raf tried to call you, but your phone was off…”

Victoria didn’t hear the rest of what her friend was saying. All she did was running to grab her keys before rushing outside, her mind suddenly numb. She barely even register the scorching tears damping her cheeks and the stinging cold air of January against her skin as she struggled with the car keys, unable to stop her hands from shaking. “Fuck, goddammit!” she snapped after a second, unable to stop the choked sob that escaped her lips.

A pair of firm, steady hands were suddenly on hers and took the keys from her. “I got you.” Jackie’s voice was calm, reassuring. It didn’t waver, just like her. She quickly opened the car and jumped in the driver seat, just as Sienna caught up with them. “C’mon, I’ll drive us.”

Without a word, Victoria got in the car, throwing a grateful glance at Jackie whilst the car engine started rumbling.

The ride to the hospital was silent, apart from how loud Victoria’s thoughts felt as they swirled chaotically in her mind. She couldn’t stop replaying the events of the night before, every excruciating moment of her and Bryce’s argument playing in front of her eyes like a movie.

***

It had all started when she had found out that Bryce’s mother was in town. She didn’t even know the name of the woman, or anything else about her, really. Bryce was always really evasive when it came to his family, and it hadn’t been a problem at first. But after almost 2 years of friendship, several months of casual dating, and what was now a pretty serious relationship, Victoria couldn’t help but feel a bit hurt when Bryce refused to introduce her to her mother. And when she had found out that no one in his family even knew about the fact that they were dating, she had lost.

Truth to be told, the minute she had opened her mouth Victoria had felt like an idiot. She wasn’t really mad at Bryce, families are often… _complicated_. He clearly hated to even speak about his, so of course, he hadn’t confided in his parents about his love life. The big problem was, with how much Victoria cared about Bryce, she felt like she wasn’t nearly as important to him as he was to her.

Maybe she could’ve had explained that instead, but it had been late and she had just got out of an exhausting 26 hours shift so she had just yelled. All the doubts and insecurities she had about their relationship had left her lips in the vicious forms of furious complaints. A _‘coward’_ , she had called him, for being too afraid to have a real relationship. At that point, he had started shouting too.

The last thing Victoria remembered was Bryce’s hurt expression as she slammed the door in his face.

All she could think of now, as guilt squeezed her throat in a vise and traffic lights darted outside of the window, was that she hadn’t had the time to tell him…

_Please… Please, be okay._

***

When they got to Edenbrook, Bryce was already in surgery. The accident wasn’t too serious, but the impact had caused his spleen to rupture and he needed an emergency splenectomy. Once they had brought him back to his room, still asleep, Victoria had crashed on the nearest couch, unable and unwilling to leave his side. She had fallen asleep while her hands still clutched Bryce’s chart.

“…I’m telling you, sweetheart, I feel great! No need to worry about me.”

A pleasantly familiar voice snatched Victoria from her slumber, as someone else spoke in a harsh voice.

“And _I_ ’m telling _you_ , get your cute little ass back on the bed or I’ll sedate you.”

Victoria opened her eyes, trying to blink away her sleep. A nurse she vaguely recognised was pointing a threatening yet oddly maternal finger at Bryce, who was trying to get up.

“I see you make friends everywhere you go, Lahela,” commented another voice, and Victoria noticed for the first time Rafael’s broad frame standing at the entrance of the room, eyes glinting in amusement. Jackie and Sienna were behind him, smirking.

No one had noticed that Victoria was awake, not even Bryce, who was about to reply to Rafael when he was cut off all of a sudden by her basically tackling him, throwing her arms around him with such eagerness that he was pushed back against the mattress and flinched in pain.

“ _Mpf-_ hey,” he snorted, briefly taken aback before wrapping his arms around her without hesitation. “Hello to you, too.”

She didn’t reply, unable to tear her face away from the crook of his neck while he gently caressed her back, planting a few kisses against her soft hair.

“Make sure he stays in bed,” they heard the nurse say in a strict tone, which made Sienna giggle.

“We’ll knock him out, if necessary,” she assured, before meeting Bryce’s gaze. He winked and she pursed her lips to hide a smile, right before grabbing Jackie and Rafael by the arm. “Let’s go buy some coffee, shall we?” she chirped enthusiastically as she dragged them away.

Once the room got quiet again, Bryce spoke.

“Sorry about scaring you, baby. You must have been freaking out… I know I would have, in your place.”

Victoria finally raised her head. “I thought you were dead,” she murmured, while her hand moved up to stroke Bryce’s cheek. There were a few cuts and bruises on his face, but other than that he looked alright, and when he flashed her his signature bright smile he looked so beautiful than nobody would’ve even noticed the injuries.

“I thought you were mad at me,” he smiled in return. His words were slightly slurred, probably because of all the drugs.

Victoria sighed, her eyes shutting close. “Yeah, well, _I_ _was_.”

“I know.” He nodded to himself, as he leaned his chin against her head. “I was a jerk, I’m sorry.”

She shook her head at his words. “I’m the one who should apologise. _I’m sorry, B._ ” Victoria huffed through her nose but gave him a faint smile. “It wasn’t one of our proudest moments, was it?”

Bryce snickered. “Nope. Not like that time when 10 people walked-in on us in the on-call room. That was _glorious_.”

Victoria laughed. “They saw us naked and Aurora threatened to pour bleach on her eyes. I wouldn’t call _that_ ‘glorious’, Bryce.” She studied his face, noticing the dark circles under his eyes. He looked so tired but he was trying so hard to stay awake, she realised guiltily. “Maybe I shall let you rest-” She started to move away, but he stopped her by grabbing her hand.

“ _Stay_. I need to tell you something.” There was a strange glint in his eyes, and for some reason, she felt her cheeks grow hotter. It happened often, with Bryce. He was the first person who made her feel like she was truly seen.

“Uh, okay. What’s up?”

Bryce moved so he could stare right at her, and rested his head against the pillow with a weary sigh. “I need to tell you something and I need you to shut up and listen till the end because all the painkillers are making me very sleepy.” She let out a giggle but waited for him to continue. He took a deep breath, before speaking slowly. “You were right. About me being a coward. **I think I’m in love with you and I’m terrified.** ”

Victoria felt her breath catching, but after a moment she cocked an eyebrow, smirking at him. “Oh? Is the amazing Bryce Lahela scared of feelings?”

“ _Hey_ , stop teasing the guy with the broken bones! I got hit by a car for you,” he protested, but he was smiling as well.

She cocked her head, amused. “You crossed the road without looking.”

“What’s life without a little risk?” he laughed in response, at which she scoffed.

“Isn’t it ironic to say something like that when you just admitted that being in love terrifies you?”

“Nah, love isn’t what scares me.” Bryce shrugged nonchalantly, but when he spoke again he was giving her the most serious look. “It’s _you_ , Torres. You’re so fucking _perfect_ , I feel like I’d lose my mind if I lost you. I’m scared of being so dependent on someone.”

Taking his hands in hers, she pondered for a moment over his confession. She started back at Bryce with disarming sincerity, the most loving smile gracing her lips. “I’m in love with you, too. Does it make you less concerned?”

“Not one bit,” he shook his head jokingly, but couldn’t stop his face from lighting up. “But _this_ might…”

Tilting her chin down, he leaned towards her as she met him halfway, their lips touching gently yet firmly. She felt him deepening the kiss and pulled back with a huffed laugh.

“Get some sleep, you moron,” she rolled her eyes when he tried to kiss her again but planted another peck against the corner of his mouth. Bryce hummed, his breath tickling her skin as his full lips hovered over her neck.

“ _In a minute._ ”

With a shiver, she finally relented and they exchanged a long, passionate kiss, tongues dancing together until they were both out of breath. Victoria placed her forehead against his, breathing heavily. “You know, you _cannot_ get into a car accident every time we get into a fight.”

Bryce grinned mischievously, his eyes gleaming. “We’ll see about that, gorgeous. The amazing Bryce is _a betting man_.”

“And a dead one, if that nurse hears you,” Victoria let out a laugh, pushing him back against the bed- not before pressing her lips against his one more time.

When he eventually fell asleep, a smile was still lingering on his blissful expression.


End file.
